Apparatus for applying pressure sensitive adhesive labels to articles



Jan. 12, 1960 w. E. HAuscHlLD ErAL APPARATUS FOR APPLYING PRESSURESENSITIVE ADHESIVE LABELS TO ARTICLES 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed 001;. l,1956 A rra/Mfr Ml V-W 7'0RS W HA usc/ml. o J.y E. Saz fc/r/ AM Jan. 12,1960 w. E. HAuscl-HLD ET AL 2,920,780

APPARATUS FOR APPLYING PRESSURE SENSITIVE ADHESIVE LABELS To ARTICLES 4Sheets-Sheei 2 Filed OCL. l, 1956 L wf; i MM M mss. n MM M WH.; W QW ,w5. my ,F

Jan. 12, 1960 W E HAUSCHILD ETAL 2,920,780

APPARATUS FR APPLYING PRESSURE SENSITIVE ADHESIVE LABELS TO ARTICLESFiled Oct. l, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheei 3 mummy, i

Il'l l II'HIIIIIIIIHI Jan. 12, 1960 w. E. HAUSCHILD ETAL 2,920,780

APPARATUS FOR APPLYING PRESSURE SENSITIVE ADHESIVE LABELS To ARTICLES 4Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Oct. l, 1956 APPARATUS FOR APPLYING PRESSURE SENSI-TIVE ADHESIVE LABELS T ARTICLES William E. Hauscliild and .lohn E.Solecki, Indianapolis, Ind., assignors to Western Electric Company,Ensorporated, New York, NSY., a corporation of New York Applicationctoher 1, 1956, Serial No. 613,203

Claims. (Cl. 21o- 9) This invention relates to apparatus for dispensingpressure sensitive adhesive labels and more particularly to apparatus`for feeding articles and applying pressure sensitive adhesive labelsthereto.

An object of the invention is to provide a new and improved apparatusfor dispensing pressure sensitive adhesive labels.

Another object ofthe invention is to provide a new and improvedapparatus for applying pressure sensitive labels onto articles.

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus for feedingarticles and applying pressure sensitive adhesive labels thereto inpredetermined positions thereon.

A further object of the invention is to provide an apparatus for feedingarticles and applying pressure sensitive adhesive labels thereto and forstopping the feeding of the articles when the feeding of the labels isinterrupted by the exhaustion of the supply of labels or by the break*ing of the tape on which the labels are removably mounted.

An apparatus illustrating certain features of the invention may includea conveyor for advancing articles in a predetermined rst path and meansfor supporting a supply of transparent tape having spaced pressuresensitive adhesive labels removably mounted thereon and for guiding thetape through a predetermined path transversely of the rst path andaround a sharp corner to cause the labels to peel olf of the tape and beadvanced thereby into adhering engagement with an article in its path. Amotor drive advances the tape and is started in response to actuation ofa trip lever by the movement of an article to a predetermined positionadjacent the label dispenser, and means are provided for projecting abeam of light onto the labels and through the tape between the labels asthe tape advances and photo-electric control means are actuated by thebeam of light passing through the tape between the labels for stoppingthe motor drive and the tape. The trip lever is adjustable along thepath of movement of the article to vary the position on the articles atwhich the labels are applied thereto. Means are provided for stoppingthe feeding of articles when the supply of labels runs out or when thetape breaks. t

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent byreference to the following detailed description and the accompanyingdrawings illustrating a preferred embodiment thereof, in which Fig. l isa fragmentary side elevational view of the apparatus for conveyingarticles and applying labels thereto;

Fig. 2 is a plan sectional view of the apparatus taken along line 2--2of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of an article showing a label appliedthereto;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view of a tape with the labels removably appliedthereto;

Patented Jan. l2, 1960 r. if@

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevational view of the labeldispensing portion of the apparatus;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary vertica-l cross sectional View of the apparatustaken along line 6 6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view of the apparatustaken along line 7 7 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view of a portion of theapparatus taken on the line 8-8 of Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is a detailed cross-sectional view taken on line 9-9 of Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary side elevational viewof a portion of theapparatus looking in the direction indicated by arrows 10-10 on Fig. 2and showing the means for adjustably mounting the starting switch andthe trip lever therefor;

Fig. 1l is a plan sectional view taken along line 11-11 of Fig. 10; and

Fig. 12 is a wiring diagram showing the electrical control for theapparatus.

The present apparatus is designed to automatically dispense labels 15and apply them onto predetermined portions of cartons 17 as the cartonsare conveyed along a predetermined path. The labels 15 have a layer ofpressure sensitive adhesive 18 (Fig. 4) on one face thereof and areremovably secured thereby to a flexible transparent or translucent tapeZtl with spaces 21 therebetween. The labels may be readily removed fromthe tape by passing the tape around a relativelysharp corner, causingthe label to progressively peel or separate therefrom.

As shown in Fig. l the cartons i7 are moved through a vertical path by aconveyor or elevator 25 which include hangers 26 pivotally mounted on aconveyor chain 27 engaging drive sprockets 28 which are driven by asuitable drive mechanism indicated diagrammatically at 30. VerticalL-shaped guide members 32 of the conveyor form a vertical guideway forguiding the cartons as they are raised to a predetermined elevationwhere they are transferred onto a horizontal conveyor (not shown) whichreceives cartons containing diferent products from a plurality ofelevators and conveys the articles to storage chutes into which thearticles are selectively shunted in accordance with the differentpositions of the labels 15 on the cartons.

A tape dispensing device 35 lfor applying the labels 15 onto the cartonsas they move thereby has a main frame plate 37 which has iianges 33 bymeans of which the frame plate is secured to one of the vertical guidemembers 32. A spool or reel 410 for holding a supply of the tape 20 withthe labels 15 thereon is rotatably mounted on a supporting spindle il onthe frame plate 37 and the tape Ztl is guided through a predeterminedpath around idler rollers 42 and a spring pressed roller 44 whichpresses the tape against an inclined guide plate 45. The guide plate 45has an integral attaching iiange or bracket d6 which is secured to theframe plate 37 by screws 47. The upper end of the guide plate 45 has anarrow edge forming a relatively sharp corner 48 which is positionedadjacent the path of travel of the cartons 17, and the tape 2i) is movedthrough a sharp angle around the corner 48 to cause the labels 15 toprogressively separate from or peel off of the tape and be carriedthereby into engagement with the carton 17 positioned in its path ofmovement. The adhesive side of the `label contacts the carton and theend portion of the label adheresV to the carton and aids in removing thelabel Afrom the tape. With the labels 15 removed therefrom, the tape 20is `directed downwardly and laterally around a guide roller 49 andbetween a pair of meshing spur gears 5() and 51 which grip the tape andare driven by a motor 52 for positively advancing the tape. As the tape20 leaves the drive gears 50 and 51, it s wound up on a tape spool orreel S3 releasably mounted on a drive spindle 54 asaonso which is driventhrough gears 55 by a motor 56 mounted on the frame plate 37. The `gear50 is mounted on one end of an arm 57 pivoted at one end to the frameplate 37 and stressed for clockwise movement by a spring 58 against astop 59 to yieldably maintain the drive gears 50 and 51 in mesh andgripping engagement with the tape 20. The stop 59 also limits pressureon the tape to prevent cutting thereof.

After a label is peeled olf of the tape 20 and is applied to a carton itadvances upwardly with the carton into engagement with a flexible belt60 and is pressed thereby into a tight engagement with the carton. Thebelt 60 rides on a pair of rollers 61 and 62, which are rotatablymounted on pins 63 and 64 carried by an arm 65. 'Ihe arm 65 is pivotallysupported on the bracket 46 for limited oscillatable movement about thepin 64 and is stressed for clockwise movement by a spring 67 to a normalposition with the belt 60 disposed in the path of travel of the cartons17. As a carton is carried upwardly by the conveyor 25, it engages thebelt 60 which n'des along the side of the carton and presses the labelfirmly against it. An electric heating unit 75 (Figs. 5 and 8) ismounted in a recess in the upper end of the inclined guide plate 45 forheating the tape and the labels 15 before the labels are applied to thecarton. As the tape and the label are heated, the coating 13 of adhesiveon the label becomes more sticky and enables the labels to be morereadily peeled from the tape and also increases the adherence of thelabels to the cartons.

Control means are provided for starting and stopping the motors 51 and56 to automatically feed the tape 20 through a predetermined distanceand apply a single label to a carton in response to movement of thecarton to a predetermined position relative to the label dispensingcorner 48 o-f the apparatus. A normally open starting switch 80 (Figs.1, 2, and 12) has a pivoted trip lever S1 connected thereto which ispositioned in the path of travel of the carton 17 and is actuatedthereby to close the switch 80 when the carton reaches a predeterminedposition. When closed, the switch 80A energizes a timer 83 (Fig. 12)which is connected to power lines 84 and S5 and closes normally opencontacts 83-1 thereof to complete a circuit through and energize thetakeup motor 56 and a relay 88 which has normally open contacts 88-1,88-2, and normally closed contacts S15-3. Upon energization of the relay88, the contact 88--2 closes and 4connects the drive motor 52 to asource of alternating current from a secondary winding 89 of atransformer 90, the primary of which is connected to the power line 84,85. The normally closed contacts 88-3 close a circuit through asecondary winding 92, and a rectifier 93 to apply direct current dynamicbraking to the drive motor 52 to effect a quick stop thereof and tolocate the foremost label adjacent the corner 48 for the next cycle.Thus, when the contacts 88-3 are opened in response to energization ofrelay 88, the braking of the motor 52 is terminated simultaneously withthe energization and starting thereof.

When the relay 88 is energized the relay contacts 88-1 close andenergize a light source 94 which is mounted on the bracket 46 on oneside of the guide plate 45 and the tape for projecting a beam of lightthrough a slot 95 in a masking plate 96 onto the labels 15 and throughthe portions 21 of the tape 20 between the labels as the tape with thelabels thereon advances along the guide plate 45. The beam of light,when it passes through the spaces 21 of the tape 20 strikes aphoto-electric cell 97 which is connected to the grid of a gas filledelectronic tube 98 and which changes the grid bias thereof to trip thetube and cause it to conduct and energize a relay 99 and thereby openthe normally closed contacts 99,-1 thereof to deenergize the relay 88and the takeup motor 56. Upon deenergization of the relay 8S the contact88-1 is opened to deenergize the light source 94, and the contact 88--2is opened to deenergize the drive motor 52, and the contact 88-3 isclosed to apply D.C. dynamic braking to the drive motor for a quick stopthereof. The timer 83 times out a fraction of a second later to opencontacts 83-1 to stop tape feed motor S6 in the event of failure of tube98 or of photocell 97 and to open contacts 83-2 to interrupt the D.C.circuit through the tube 98 and prepare it for the next cycle.

The starting switch 80 and the trip lever 81 (Figs. l,

i' 2, l0, and 11) are carried by an apertured block 100 which isslidably mounted on a pair of vertical guide rods 1011-102 and has athreaded bore engaging a threaded rod 103. The rods 101, 102, 103 aresupported in a suitable frame 104 secured to one of the vertical guidemembers 32 of the conveyor 25, and the rod 102 has graduations thereonto indicate the relative position of the trip lever 81. The threaded rod103 has a handle 106 thereon by means of which the rod may be rotated toraise and lower the switch and the trip lever 81 to vary the distancebetween it and the end and the corner 48 of the tape dispensing device35. Thus, the trip lever 81 may be adjusted to selectively vary theposition on the carton 17 at which the label 15 is applied. A spring 108yieldably maintains the switch 80 open and the trip lever 81 in ahorizontal position in the path of movement of the cartons 17.

A lever 110 is mounted on a pin 111 pivotally supported in the frameplate 37 and rides on the roll of tape 20 on the supply reel 40 on oneside of the frame plate and has an arm 112 on the other side of theframe plate for actuating a normally closed switch 113 when all but apredetermined supply of tape is exhausted to stop the conveyor drive 30and thereby prevent the movement of cartons 17 past the dispenser whenthere is a possibility that no labels can be applied thereto. As shownin Fig. 5 the idler roller 49 about which the tape 20 moves, isrotatably supported on crank arm 114 secured to a pin 115 which isoscillatably mounted on the frame plate 37 and has a cam 116 foractuating a switch 117. The tape 20 holds the roller 49 and crank arm114 in operative position to maintain the switch 117 closed and in theevent the tape 20 should break, the weight of the roller 49 and thecrank arm 114 will cause them to turn the cam 116 and open the switch117 and thereby effect the stopping of the conveyor drive 30 (Fig. 1).

To permit adjusting the position of the corner 48 relative to the sideof the carton 17 the guide plate 45 is made with a separate movablesection on which the corner 48 is formed and which is adjustably securedto the plate 45 by screws 146 (Figs. 5 and 9) and has a shallow atgroove 147 formed in the upper portion thereof for guiding the tape 20therein. The masking plate 96 likewise is adjustably secured to theguide plate 45 to permit adjustment of the slot 95 and the beam lightrelative to the corner 48 whereby the tape drive controls may beadjusted to stop the tape 20 on the guide plate 145 with the end of theforemost label 15 adjacent the corner 48.

In the operation of the apparatus the conveyor 25 moves the cartons 17upwardly to a predetermined position where the upper edge of the cartonactuates the trip lever 81 and closes the starting switch 80 to energizethe timer 83 and close the contacts 83-1 and 83-2 for a predeterminedinterval. The closing of contacts 83-1 starts the takeup motor 56 andenergizes the relay 88 which starts the drive motor 52 to feed the tape20 and cause the foremost label 15 to peel off of the tape and beadvanced thereby into adhering engagement with the side of the carton 17and in a predetermined location thereon. The energization of the relay88 closes its contact 88-1 and effects the energization of the lightsource 94 and the projection of the beam of light which is interceptedby the label 15 as the label passes therebeneath and after the label hasbeen advanced a predetermined distance the beam of light passes throughthe portion 21 of the tape between adjacent labels and strikes thephoto-electric cell 97 to energize it and change the grid bias of theelectronic tube 98 and cause-it to conduct and energize the relay 99.This instantly opens contacts 99-1 to stop the takeup motor 56 anddeenergize relay 88 which effects the immediate deenergization of thedrive motor 52 and simultaneously therewith effects the application ofD.C. dynamic braking current to the motor to brake the motor drive andquickly stop the feeding movement ofthe tape with the forward end of theleading label on the tape positioned adjacent the corner 4S of the guideplate 45. In the event of the breakage of the tape the crank arm 114 andthe roller 49 thereon will be oscillated to actuate the switch 117 tostop the conveyor drive 3i) and when the tape from the tape supply .reel4t) becomes exhausted the switch 111 is actuated to stop the conveyordrive 36. The timer 83, after it is actuated, times out a fraction of asecond after the tape feed stops and thus opens the circuit to insurethat the tape stops in case of a failure of the electronic tube 98 orphoto-electric cell 97.

While a trip lever 81 has been shown for actuating the starting switch80 of the label feed mechanism in response to movement of a carton to apredetermined position, it will be understood that other suitable means,as, for eX- ample, a photo-electric means, may be used to actuate theswitch 80 in response to the movement of the carton to saidpredetermined position.

From the above description, it will be seen that a relatively simple andeffective mechanism is provided for automatically applying pressuresensitive adhesive labels individually onto selected portions ofadvancing cartons in response to movement of the cartons individuallyinto a predetermined position in their path of travel, and that meansare provided for automatically stopping the label feed after a label hasbeen applied to a carton, and that means are provided for stopping thecarton conveyor drive when the supply of tape is exhausted or when thelabel supporting tape breaks.

It is to be understood that the above-described arrangements are simplyillustrative of the application of the principles of this invention.Numerous other arrangements may be readily devised by those skilled inthe art which will embody the principles of the invention and fallwithin the spirit and scope thereof.

What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus for applying lpressure sensitive adhesive labels ontoarticles, means for feeding articles along a predetermined rst path, asupply of transparent tape having pressure sensitive labels spacedtherealong, means for supporting the supply of transparent tape and forguiding said tape through a predetermined second path transversely ofsaid rst path and around a corner to cause the labels to peel olf of thetape and be advanced thereby into adhering engagement with movingarticles in their path, drive means for advancing said tape along saidsecond path, a switch means mounted in the path of movement of saidarticle and actuated by the movement of an article to a predeterminedposition for starting the drive means, means operated by the switchmeans for directing a beam of light onto the labels and through thetransparent tape between the labels as the tape is advanced, and meansresponsive to the beam of light passing through the tape between saidlabels for stopping said drive means, and means for selectively movingsaid switch means to vary the position of the labels applied to thearticles.

2. A device for applying labels to articles, a transparent tape havingspaced opaque labels removably attached thereto, means for advancingarticles, means for feeding the tape to said articles to apply thelabels, a light source to direct a beam through the path of the tape, anormally open circuit having a photocell, a thyratron connected to andadapted to be operated by said photocell, said photocell made conductivein response to the light beam passing through the tape, relay meanswithin said circuit and operated by the thyratron to interrupt the tapefeed means and light source, a timer energized by the advance of anarticle to actuate the light source and tape feeding means, and meansoperated by the timer timing-out to deenergize the thyratron.

3. An apparatus for dispensing labels from a movable transparent web towhich labels are separately attached in spaced relationship comprisingmeans for advancing articles to be labeled, means for feeding andapplying said labels to said advancing articles, a timer unit operatedby the advance of each article for initiating operation of said feedmeans, said timer unit adapted to time out after a period ofV timerequired to apply a label, a normally unoperated tube circuit, aphotocell positioned on one side of said web to sense for spaces betweensaid labels, an unoperated light source positioned on the opposite sideof said web, a iirst relay circuit operated by said timer for operatingsaid light source to energize said photocell to operate said tubecircuit, a second relay circuit operated by said tube circuit forinterrupting said iirst relay circuit, and means operated by said timertiming out for deenergizing said tube circuit a further interrupting ofsaid first relay circuit.

4. An apparatus for dispensing labels from a movable transparent web towhich the labels are separably attached in spaced relationshipcomprising means for individually advancing articles to be labeled, amovably mounted switch means actuated by an advanced article, a timeroperated by the switch means, a rst relay circuit energized by thetimer, a normally closed switch in series with the first relay circuit,alight source energized by the lirst relay circuit and directed towardthe tape, a photocell in the path of the light source on the oppositeside of the tape and adapted to be energized by the passage of lightthrough the space between a pair of labels, an electron tube operated bythe energization of the photocell, a second relay circuit operated bythe electronic tube to open the normally closed switch, a guide platejuxtaposed to the path of the articles, a drive unit actuated by the rstrelay circuit to move the transparent web over the guide plate to applya label to a predetermined section of the article, means operated bysaid timer timing out after a predetermined period of time forinterrupting the operation of the electronic tube and said first relaycircuit, and means for moving the switch to vary the predeterminedsection of the article that receives the label.

5. A device for applying labels to articles, a transparent tape havingpressure-sensitive adhesive labels spaced therealong, means foradvancing articles along a predetermined path, a guide plate juxtaposedto said predetermined path, means for feeding tape over said guide plateto apply a label to each article advanced along said predetermined path,and a control circuit for said tape feeding means comprising a firstcircuit having normally opened and normally closed contacts togetherwith a first relay, means operated by closure of said normally openedcontacts and the energization of said relay for operating the tape feedmeans, a normally unoperated light source adapted to project light ontosaid labels, means actuated by said first relay for operating said lightsource, a second circuit including a thyratron and a second relayadapted to open said normally closed contacts, a photoelectric deviceresponsive to the passage of light through said transparent tape tooperate said thyratron and energize said second relay to open saidnormally closed contacts, a movably mounted switch means juxtaposed tosaid predetermined path of said articles and operated by the movement ofan article, a timer operated by said switch means for immediatelyclosing said normally opened contacts, a second set of normally openedcontacts connected to said second relay and immediately closed byoperation of said timer, said timer adapted to open both Sets of saidnormally opened contacts following a period of time suflicient for thefeed means to advance a label onto a moving article, and means to adjustthe position of said switch means to vary the position of the labelapplied to the moving article.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 8 FloodOct. 18, 1949 Holt et al. Ian. 16, 1951 Avery Sept. 25, 1951 Hesson Jan.20, 1953 Keely Oct. 25, 1955 Shengo Oct. 25, 1955 Petterson Aug. 13,1957 Booty Dec. 31, 1957 OTHER REFERENCES Modern Packaging, May 1956,page 179.

